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Healthcare Repeal Effort Comes to an End, Saving Medicaid Funds for New Mexico

WASHINGTON DC— Republicans in Congress decided today to end their push on the Graham-Cassidy bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act, because they do not have enough votes in their party to pass it through the Senate. Their decision comes after the Congressional Budget Office released a preliminary report yesterday that concluded millions of Americans would lose their healthcare coverage under the legislation, mostly due to significant cuts to Medicaid. The bill would have ended Medicaid Expansion for low-income adults and resulted in New Mexico losing billions of federal dollars over the next ten years.

“Medicaid has greatly improved the physical and economic health of New Mexico,” said Sireesha Manne, an attorney with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty. “This bill suffered the same problems as older versions. It would have ripped away healthcare coverage from millions of people and permanently damaged Medicaid – a cornerstone of our healthcare system.”

The bill would have ended the Medicaid Expansion that provides healthcare coverage to more than 255,000 low-income adult New Mexicans, and resulted in New Mexico losing $9 billion federal dollars by the year 2027, according to the nonpartisan research group Avalere. The bill capped funding for the entire Medicaid program and eliminated tax credits that help people buy insurance. States would have been allowed to let insurance plans stop covering essential health benefits and to charge more to consumers with pre-existing conditions.

“New Mexico would have been forced to pay billions more in healthcare costs or slash Medicaid coverage for more than 230,000 people and cut services for the most vulnerable populations – including children, seniors, and people with disabilities,” said Manne.

The bill faced widespread opposition from state officials, consumer groups, and medical and industry groups. It also proved to be unpopular among Americans, with a CBS News Poll showing 52% of respondents disapproving the bill and only 20% in approval. A statewide poll conducted in New Mexico earlier this year by Research & Polling, Inc. found that nearly three-quarters of New Mexicans are opposed to reducing federal funding for Medicaid, and four out of five voters believe Medicaid is “important” or “very important” to residents.